A Walk in the Park
by Cometstrike
Summary: Ratchet, Clank, and Susie go on a casual get-together walk in Metropolis. They just all want to relax and have fun, right? Of course, things don't always go the way that we expect them to.


_"As of now, no more information will be disclosed to the general public about concerns of the two Omega-class inmates, Vendra Prog and Neftin Prog. The Polarian president is beginning to arrange a convoy set for the Vartax Detention Center for these two outlaws soon in the near future, but the escorts as of now are unknown-"_

The TV was clicked off, but the sound was drowned out by the piercing whistle that echoed throughout the room. Ratchet set the remote down, and he looked down at Clank with raised eyebrows. "You hear that, Clank? Two Omega-class outlaws! And from the sound of it, they're brother and sister! Guess it runs in the family, eh?"

"I agree, it is a bit of a shock," Clank replied. "It does, however makes me wonder what on earth they did that they needed to be escorted to Vartax."

"Eh, probably just some of your petty outlaw stuff. Ya know, revamped, petty outlaw stuff. And right, they're goin' to Vartax! Man, I remember we were there for three months!"

"I wonder who they are going to chose to escort them." Clank wondered aloud. "Hopefully someone capable."

"I know it won't be us!" Ratchet decided. "Not because we're not capable, but I mean…come on. They can chose from like, anybody with Galactic authority. I'm positive they won't turn to us."

Clank felt an odd sense of foreboding.

"Well, ready to go to Magnus?" Ratchet asked, pushing himself of the couch; as he stretched Clank replied, "Yes, let's hurry and go pick up Susie so we can be back before noon, before rush hour hits."

"_OOOOH_, yeah, we don't wanna get stuck in rush hour," A loud cracking noise split the air as Ratchet popped his back; the robot flinched at the loud sound as he trekked over to the door and pulled it open, immediately catching sight of the lone letter in their mailbox.

"The mail is here?" Clank questioned, a bit confused. He got it out the mailbox and inspected it."This early?"

Then at that moment, the universe yet again righted itself as Ratchet appeared, promptly blowing the topic off. He rushed out the door, seizing Clank by the hand and headed towards Aphelion. "C'mon, Clank! It can't be that important!"

"Wait, l want to read it now!" Clank told him, unsuccessfully trying to open the letter with one hand. He felt Ratchet pause in his stride, then a hand came over the top of his head and snatched the letter away. "Hey!"

"_No work today, all day we play~_!" Ratchet sang, waving the letter teasingly in front of the robot's face before tucking it into his suit.

"I did adhere to that ridiculous rhyme, didn't I?" Clank groaned.

"Yeah, so Susie won't be bored when we do stuff!" Ratchet said, stopping in front of Aphelion and tossing Clank in when the cockpit was only half open. When he got in he was met with an amused look. Ratchet countered it with a smile, "What?"

"You're excited, aren't you?"

"I guess you could say that. One no-stop trip to planet Magnus, coming up~! Whoooo, _yeah_!" The cockpit remained open as the ship lifted up and shot off, and the lombax's whooping could be heard across Metropolis for miles. Down below, people looked up to see what the heck was making such a loud noise.

"Ratchet, you forgot to close the cockpit!" Clank cried, closing his eyes. He felt the wind pressing hard down on him, forcing him back into his seat.

"What?!" Ratchet called, raising a hand up to his ear. He leaned towards Clank. "I can't hear you, the wind's blowing too hard!"

"I said, close the cockpit!"

"_HAAH?!_"

"_Close the cockpit!_"

"**_WHUAAAAT?!_**"

"**_CLOSE_****…..****_THE_****…..**"

At that moment, Ratchet did press the button to lower the glass covering, but Clank didn't notice.

"_**COCK-!**_" Clank opened his eyes when he realized he wasn't yelling over the wind and saw that the cockpit was closed. "…Oh…" He realized that it was too silent and looked over at Ratchet, who was staring down at him with widened eyes. A strange smile was resting on his face as he asked, "….what was that you were saying, buddy?"

Clank couldn't read the lombax's expression at all, and he was a bit confused. "I was telling you to close the cockpit…?"

At this, Ratchet gave a loud bark, and after Clank got done covering his nonexistent ears he registered that the lombax was laughing. Ratchet sighed, chuckling, then leaned back. "Whooo, you had me there for a bit, pal…I thought you were going into unsanitary territory."

Now the robot was even more confused. Did he say something strange? If Ratchet hadn't really heard him when the cockpit was opened and he kept talking after it was closed….

Oh, duh!

"Do you not like chickens?" Clank asked blindly. Ratchet, who was still chortling silently to himself, erupted into laughter again. Clank tilted his head to the side, his mouth slightly open. "Uh…" Several seconds later he saw something falling from Ratchet's eyes, and he grew concerned. "Ratchet, why are you crying? I did not know that chickens induced such emotional trauma onto you!"

Ratchet's hand slammed down on the autopilot button (Aphelion complained, but she went unheard) and he collapsed back into his seat, one hand covering his face as he laughed. "Y-Yes…how could you not n-notice?" Ratchet forced out between snorts.

Clank was even, even more confused now-was it possible to experience joy and sorrow at the same time? It certainly seemed like that right now, with the laughing and crying happening at the same time. Maybe he just needed to see a therapist…

"Clank, I'm just messin' with you, man." Ratchet said, finally quieting down minutes later so he could breathe. He took in a deep breath-then busted into laughter again at Clank's puzzled expression.

"Hm?" Clank wondered, and the lombax stopped long enough to tell him, "Clank, I'm not talking about chickens…"

"You're not talking about chickens?" Clank repeated. "But the word 'co-" A hand was slapped over his mouth, and he glared at the smiling Ratchet, who shook a finger at him.

"Keep your mouth clean, pal!"

Clank finally got the gist of it, and he realized that it matched up with the lombax's reaction. He pulled Ratchet's hand from his mouth, "Are you telling me that I accidentally used the obscene connotation of a word? And you teased me for it?"

Ratchet choked down a laugh. "No, you're wrong. It's not obscene, it's just another way of saying a body part." He let loose a snicker. "That's all…"

Clank folded his arms and faced front. "Hmmph!"

Ratchet patted him twice on the back. "It's alright pal. You didn't know." He started chuckling again.

"I thought that you needed therapeutic help!"

"Why?"

"Because you were laughing and crying at the same time!"

Ratchet put a hand to his mouth, attempting to physically restrain himself from laughing; several seconds later he replied, "Clank, it's alright to laugh and cry at the same time. It doesn't happen because you're simultaneously happy and sad at the same time."

"You mean your tear ducts are affected by laughter?"

Here Ratchet bit his lip, before saying, "Yes," And started off another round of laughing.

The robot's mouth gaped at this new piece of knowledge then resumed being annoyed. But then-he came up with a plan of revenge. Oh yes, he could see it now.

Irony Strike prepared.

Clank began laughing along with Ratchet at the humorous plot unfolding in his head. The lombax thought he was laughing with him and he said, "I knew you'd come around, Clank."

"Wha-oh yes," Clank replied. "I should really learn to stop being so uptight."

"Ahhhh. Well, I guess I should take the controls now-" Ratchet began, but then his ship cut him off at the same time he spotted the giant planet looming in front of them. "We arrived thirty seconds ago."

"Oh yeah, I did hit autopilot, didn't I?" Ratchet asked.

"No, you punched autopilot," Aphelion told him, still remembering how Ratchet had assaulted the button; the lombax however, blocked out her remark as he told Clank, "Well, we get in, get Susie, and get out so we can head back. I've got a bunch of places I mapped out in Metropolis."

"It's 11:30." Clank told him.

Ratchet's eyes widened, and he immediately pulled them down into a steep nosedive towards the planet. "Oh, no, I am not letting rush hour catch up to us!"

As they accelerated down faster and faster, Clank was lifted out of his seat by the lack of a certain forces that usually kept him attached to it. He waved his hands widely as he floated uncontrollably around Aphelion. "Ratchet, slow down!"

"That's why you gotta wear your seat belt, buddy!" Ratchet whooped, still being held down securely in his seat by the object of discussion.

"I slipped out of my seatbelt!" Clank told him, swatting at Ratchet's head and missing as the lombax ducked away from him. He sailed off in the opposite direction, towards the backseat. "It's too big for me!"

"You like zero-gravity?" Ratchet called. Before Clank could even attempt to tell him how he really felt about the situation, he suddenly plopped down into the backseat, landing on his back. "Too bad, 'cause we're already here!"

Sure enough, one glance out the side window told Clank that they'd broken past the atmosphere and were headed down. The ship touched down seconds later. "I hope you don't drive like that when we have Susie with us." Came the robot's muffled voice from the backseat. In the next moment Ratchet pulled him out by the leg and pulled him onto his harness as he quickly jumped out of Aphelion. Immediately the robot noticed something odd.

"Why is the sky on the ground and the ground on the sky?" Clank wondered.

"It's officially the Land-Sky Swap Day on planet Magnus," Ratchet told him. "If you get here early for the festival you get a free t-shirt and a muffin basket."

"You are a very smart donkey," Clank told him, inverting himself on Ratchet's back. "A _very_ smart one."

"So, Aldoros Plains!" Ratchet began, beginning to explore the Tharpod village he'd landed smack in the middle of. Of course, that meant that they'd soon be flocked by the villagers; all around they looked up, then recognizing two members of the Fearsome Foursom, they immediately began heading migrating over to them.

"It still looks really beautiful, in a different way." Ratchet continued, looking up at the floating pieces of land that were suspended all around.

"Why thank you, young one." Came a voice from behind them, and Ratchet turned to face an elderly-looking Tharpod. Who looked familiar, by the way-

"Oh, aren't you the Tharpod who first told us about Ephemeris? How're things going around here?"

"Peaceful, thanks to you and your friends." the elderly Tharpod droned. "We cannot thank you enough for what you have done for us."

"It was no hassle. We had to do something for your people." Clank said from Ratchet's back.

The elderly Tharpod 'hmmed' in understanding, tilting his head down, then rising it up in a very slow nod. "I appreciate youngsters with integrity and drive. I am thankful for the moment of fate that brought you to us."

"Err…" Ratchet rubbed the back of his head._ Moment of fate indeed, though technically the whole reason we came to Magnus was because of an assassination attempt gone wrong, then we were kidnapped and ported to here where we escaped from a detention center that was going to probe and poke the crap outta us and then making it to here were these giant asshole bugs would grab pieces of land and send us plummeting down to our death and then we went into a forest with a giant fire-breathing worm and had giant spinning steel blades that we had to avoid getting skewered on and then had to go defeat a giant robot who was a kind of a butthead at first but then he turned nice then we had to go water skiing and haul ass away from a giant fish monster that tried to eat us and we had to teach him a lesson and we kicked his ass by the way and then we went through a forest on a giant badass robot which I wanted to keep as a pet but Clank said nooooo and then we had to literally squeeze through a freakin' asteroid field to make it to an insane doctor who's lived alone for God knows how long and he kept feeding me treats which really didn't taste bad actually and then we ended up shipwrecked in the middle of freaking no where in MILES AND MILES OF ICE and then The Plumber appeared like he always does and saved our asses and then we ended up fighting our way through a city of killer robots which isn't new but I felt I had to mention it and then when we finally make it to Ephemeris we all had a WTF moment when we saw Mr. Dinkles all possessed and stuff then we had to fight the dang thing that was possessing him and then when we finally beat him he gets bitch slapped by Dr. Nefarious who we thought turned nice but then he blindsided us and thought that he had us stranded but I was like HAAA I can drive weaponized drones and brought us back home and the authorities tried to fine me and make me take an online class but then Qwark stepped in and told them no and I was like, a-booyah!_

That would've sounded really awkward if he'd said it out loud, not to mention he would gain a scolding/speech from Clank about 'what not to say in a situation like this', so he kept it inside. Even if he'd tried to have said something he wouldn't have gotten far, considering how someone came up behind and began squeezing the life out of him.

"OOOF!" Ratchet wheezed, feeling his waist being crushed. It didn't take him a half second to figure out who it was.

"I was waiting for you guys all day, and now you're here!" Susie shrieked excitedly, increasing the pressure around Ratchet's body. The lombax couldn't even say anything at the moment, so Clank stepped in.

"We are sorry if we're a bit late, Susie. We…got a bit distracted on the way here," Clank said, stopping to chuckle at Ratchet's situation. "But, now we are ready when you are to head back."

"I'm so excited to be spending a day with you guys!" The girl shouted, "I couldn't wait for today!"

For the second time that day Clank swore that he heard Ratchet's back cracking-underneath Susie's hug. By now Ratchet was attempting to scrabble away from the bone crushing arms, but his struggle went unnoticed as Susie continued to hold him tighter. The robot got an idea.

"Susie….if we don't leave now, the ice cream shop might be crowded when we get back!" Clank teased.

Immediately the girl let go and shot off so fast towards Aphelion that a huge cloud of dust rose us and nearly smothered everyone within a thirty foot radius. That made trying to get air back even a bigger chore for Ratchet, who started gasping for air even harder. Clank laughed at him, remarking, "You look like a beached Drophyd!"

"Very funny!" Ratchet told him, then started coughing as second later, waving his hand in the air. "Oh boy, she c-*cough* can really move, can't she?"

"Ah, yes. Susie. Not a very good idea to keep her waiting, especially when she's this excited," The elderly Tharpod told him, seemingly unaffected by the monster dust cloud. "Please take care of her."

"We will, sir," Clank told him as Ratchet turned with his hands over his mouth, walking toward his ship. Susie was already inside, bouncing around in the backseat, and at the same time Aphelion was unsuccessfully trying to calm her down. Ratchet and Clank got in and closed the cockpit.

"Whew!" Ratchet breathed, putting a hand to his chest. "That's one_ killer_ hug you've got there."

Clank pointed at the clock. "11:45!"

"Outta here, dudes!" Ratchet yelled, slamming his foot down on the accelerator. Aphelion took off so fast that the downdraft blasted everyone on the ground. Several Tharpods were blown off the cliffs, screaming. Clank looked down worridley.

"Oh dear. I do hope they'll be alright."

"Don't worry Clank, Tharpods living on Aldoros Plains carry parachutes." Susie told him. She paused, looking thoughtful.

"At least,_ I_ do..."

* * *

"Here we are, Susie!"

The ship touched down on the ground, and soon the three occupants inside jumped out. Before Ratchet or Clank could do anything, Susie began zipping back and forth, awestruck by the small part of the huge city she could see. They'd parked in a public area, and here, there were people occupying their personalized time in different ways. Some where situated on benches around, on break, and others where on exercise training.

"Watch out for the joggers, Susie!" Clank called, watching the small girl zoom impossibly fast across the park.

"Look at all the flying cars! And all of the different walkways that you can take, and all the shops and people and stores and…" Susie seemed a bit lost to the world as she took in as much as she could around her, and didn't notice how she mowed over a group of Novalians that were out for a casual jog. Of course, as she sped off, she failed to see or hear the five-person pileup that she caused. A lot of swearing and fussing ensued from the tangled group as they tried to straighten themselves out.

"Uh, Susie, you wanna go get ice cream now?" Ratchet asked, watching the entire scene. "They have pistachio and cream cheese sundaes."

Clank made a face. "…did you say, pistachio and cream cheese sundaes?"

Ratchet nodded vigorously, as Susie came over. "Yeah, see the flavors really compliment each other and, and if you add a bit of chocolate syrup on the top-"

"Come on, let's go!" Susie grabbed Ratchet and Clank's hands and tugged them away. Ratchet stumbled and landed hard on the ground, sliding forward painfully on his front as Susie continued to pull him. "Ooof! Susie-"

"Where is it, Ratchet? Where's the ice cream shop?"

"Ungh, _ow_- If you let me get up, maybe I can-!"

"There it is!" Susie shouted, stopping, oblivious to Ratchet and Clank sliding to a painful stop behind her. "Near the park entrance!"

Ratchet pushed himself up slowly with one hand. "…can I have my hand back now? I miss it."

His request went unheard as Susie took off again, headed straight for the Ice cream stand. She stopped suddenly in front of it, letting the duo go. The excess inertia caused them both to crash face first into the stand, making it shake. "OOf!"

"Can I have three pistacio and cream cheese sundaes, please?" Susie bounced excitedly on her heels.

The employee didn't share Susie's enthusiasm and instead regarded her with bored neutrality. She leaned against the counter, watching the girl.

"Yeah, sure kid. Where're your parents, 'cause I got this no-kids-without-adult-supervision around my shop. The last time some rotten child replaces my ice cream with a mixture of Florana money dung and chilled molasses is the last."

"Mo-lass-ses?" Susie asked, confused. "What's mo-lass-ses?"

"It's what I'm moving like until I see some adult with you."

"Oh, they're right here!" Susie pointed down. "They fell asleep when we got here. I think the walk here tired them out."

The woman leaned over, saw Ratchet and Clank sprawled out of the ground, and shrugged. Turning, she said, "Ah, works for me."

Once she'd gotten their ice cream ready Susie tried to 'wake' Ratchet and Clank up. "Guys, come on! You can't sleep now!"

"Forgive me for briefly losing consciousness," Clank said, sitting up. Ratchet did the same, adding on, "Yeah, I was sliding so fast I didn't see that wall in front of me."

"Well, get your ice cream so we can leave!" Susie commanded, giving them their sundaes. Clank looked at his for a second then looked up at the lady, who gave him a skeptical look back. "Can I have metal fillings on mine?"

"Sure. Whatever, shortstuff."

"Ya know, this is really good!" Ratchet said aloud, turning around-and bumping into someone. "Sorry, ma'am," He said automatically. At least, he thought it was a woman-whoever it was, they were wearing a lot of purple. A second later Ratchet's eyes widened and his spoon paused halfway to his mouth as saw who if was. A second after_ that_, his ear drums got assaulted.

"How_ infuriating!_" Dr. Nefarious yelled loudly, throwing his hands up. "Why is it that I run into you two everywhere I go?!"

"Well sir, given your track record of being in the right place at the right time, I would say I'm not surprised," Lawrence said calmly, appearing by the doctor's side.

"What are you doing here, Nefarious?" Ratchet asked, scooping some ice cream up. He ate a spoonful and added, " You seem too grouchy and overbearing to enjoy ice cream."

"That's where you're wrong, squishie!" Nefarious shot back, jabbing the lombax in the chest with a clawed finger. "And I'll have you know that they serve my favorite type of ice cream here! It's the only flavor I'll have!"

"And when he says it's the only flavor, it really is," Lawrence added on, setting his half lidded eyes on Ratchet. "And apparently this is the only place around that has it. I tell you, going planet to planet, holding up ice cream shops and demanding pistachio and cream cheese ice cream. How…" The butler paused, "…_appropriate,_ for my master's intellect."

"Ratchet, they are out of ice cream," Clank announced, coming up behind him. Ratchet's ears hitched up and he started having a coughing fit; he'd had ice cream in his mouth at the same time he laughed. Clank whacked him on the back as Ratchet hunched over, coughing and laughing at the same time.

"What has gotten into you, moron?" Nefarious asked grouchily. "Get out the way!" He moved forward, pushing past Ratchet and Clank and then encountering Susie. "Oh, you too? It must be the 'Annoy Dr. Nefarious Group Day."

"Hi Dr. Nafoobious!" Susie said brightly. Ratchet, who'd already been on the ground laughing, cracked up harder. Lawrence covered a hand with his mouth, hiding a laugh.

The doctor's eyes flashed. "Who're you talking to, because I_ know_ it can't be me!"

"Of course it is, silly!" Susie said, "Did you come to get ice cream?"

"No, I came to get quills and sofas!" Nefarious bellowed. "Move, child!"

"What can I do for you, Iron Lung?" The worker asked.

"One order of pistachio and cream cheese ice cream!"

"Oh sorry, I forgot to mention. I'm clean out, you were beat by these three pipsqueaks here."

At this, Nefarious mouth dropped open, and then hearing Ratchet laughing at him in the background, sparks began to fly as he got angry. Raising his arms up, he yelled, "**_RAAAAAATT-_**"

_"Oh Janice. It was me. I was the one who murdered your second cousin once removed."_

_"That wasn't my cousin. It was my mother-in-law in disguise! And I say, good riddance!"_

"Oh dearie. Season five, episode eighteen," Lawrence mused over Ratchet's howling. "That once had very exceptional reviews. Oh, I must remember to poll it in as a series favorite. In any case, if would be wise for you three to depart now, seeing the Dr.'s boiling temper now. I imagine when I slap him out of it he will try to lay waste to your existence."

"This is too funny!" Ratchet choked out. "He's spazzing out over ice cream!" He reached for his own ice cream in Clank's hand, having given it to the robot before he began on his tirade of laughing. "Oh, that's_ wonderful_."

"Come on, guys!" Susie said, revving up again. "Let's go see that guy that you told me about, what was his name? I know he's tall because the word big is before his name."

"Oh, no. He's big, but not in the way you're thinking, Susie," Ratchet said grinning, and earned himself a light tap from Clank. "His name's Big Al, and he has a lot of technology you can look at. Come on, let's go!"

"Please do make your selves scarce. I am positive he will be searching to bring utter annihilation upon you three," Lawrence said, raising one hand up. "But I do hope that you three will have an enjoyable and eventful day."

"Thanks for pretending to care, Lawrence. It means a lot," Ratchet said, rolling his eyes. He turned around and shielded his face with one hand, looking around. "Now, Clank…how d'you suppose we get to Big Al's Roboshack from the Captain Starshield national park?"

"There's an air taxi that makes it route by Al's shop. We can use that to get there-" Clank then felt someone send him an electronic message. He was just about to open his monitor up but Ratchet blocked his compartment with one hand, giving the robot a stern look and shaking his head.

"I don't think so," Ratchet tilted his head over to Susie, who was busy watching the flying vehicles up above them. "Remember?"

"But Ratchet, what if it was-"

"Important? It's gonna have to wait. This day is for Susie and Susie only," Ratchet stood up, then raised an eyebrow down at the robot.

"I am sorry. I just feel very," Clank paused, then made quotations, "'On the edge' lately. As if something is going to happen to us in the near future. Something big. I do not know why I have this feeling."

"Well, relax! Can you wait just a few more hours? Just until she leaves?"

"I will not get sidetracked again, Ratchet."

"Thanks, pal. And hey, come on, it can't be that important, right?" Ratchet shrugged his shoulders and inserted his spoon into his sundae. "It's not like the entire Solanian defense force is out looking for us, right?"

"Right," Clank agreed, a microsecond before Susie grabbed them both again. As the girl took off Clank tried giving her instructions as where to run while Ratchet once again resumed grunting in pain as he hit a rough bump on the ground every three seconds. No sooner than they had left the scene two Galactic Rangers made an appearance at the entrance of the park. For a second they stood, looking around and after a moment's consideration they went towards the ice cream shop. Immediately they saw a strange scene: long time supervillain and mad scientist, Dr. Nefarious frozen in place, his hands up in the air and the gears in his head turning and jamming. At the same time a soap opera could be heard playing and nearby was a butler-esque robot, one hand up to his mouth covering a humorous smile and the other in the air, by the doctor's head. And then the ice cream manager leaning over the counter, listening to what sounded like certain steamy soap operea being broadcasted.

"Uh…" One Ranger muttered. "Do you see…"

"We've seen weirder things, H22," The other one said. "Now come on, let's go check around before Miss. Phyronix gets on us for slacking off!"

"You were the one having a bath in a vat of Gadgetron oil, F54!"

"Oh, quiet you! Why ah outta-"

"Can I help you two sirs?"

Both robots looked up to see the butler robot turned to face them, his hand still up by the doctor's head. Regardless of his question, whoever, his half opened eyes told them he didn't want to be bothered at all by them. The female at the counter looked over as well, accusation on her face.

"Hey, we're trying to listen to Lance and Janice here and you two are making too much noise!"

"Well, sor-_ree,_ ma'am!" H22 would've rolled his eyes if he had any. "We're kinda lookin' for someone!"

"Two someones, actually," F54 scratched the back of his head, "Would you guys have seen Ratchet and Clank here today? There's something that we hafta report to 'em."

The half-lidded eyes didn't budge a bit as Lawrence replied, "Under what circumstances do you need their presence for?"

"Ahem. That's Solanian government business, pal." H22 countered. "And that's implyin' that you've seen 'em today! Have you?"

"Hmm, if I can so recall…" Lawrence paused, one finger tapping at his chin. " I've seen so many people today…oh dear, my memory seems to be slipping…I might need to get my neuroreceptors checked again."

With a loud sigh, F54 ran his gun down his face. Unlike his partner H22, he wasn't as patient. "How many other people do you know look like a giant yellow cat and a small silver robot?"

"That depends. I have a very clever imagination."

Over his partner's annoyed growl H22 addressed the woman, who, like Lawrence, looked like she couldn't care less about the situation. "What about you, ma'am? You seen them around?"

"What did they look like, again?" The woman smirked at them.

"Stop foolin' around!" F54 shouted. "We know they're around here because we tracked their ship here!"

"And they gave us the internal IP address of both their ships so we know it's not anyone else." H22 added, folding his arms.

"And if ya don't comply with us, Ah'll write you three…er, you _two_ up on charges for withholding the location of two government wanted individuals!" F54 finished, crossing his arms also.

"Oh, my. I'm afraid my incarceration would not make the good doctor happy," Lawrence motioned towards the doctor, still frozen. "When I snap him out of it and tell him the news, his already bad temper will be heightened and quite possibly taken out on you two. And everybody within a five mile radius."

The Rangers looked at each other nervously; they wouldn't be able to take Dr. Nefarious themselves, they knew. Shrugging at each other, they turned their attention towards the ice cream lady. "Yeah, okay. So what do_ you_ have to defend yourself?"

"You know, I think I did see two someones that looked like your description," The woman said suddenly, her voice ringing in a high artificial note. The Rangers didn't say a thing, remaining motionless. She gave a nervous laugh and shrugged at the lack of the agitated Ranger's response. "And I think I heard them say they were headed to Al's Roboshack."

"That'sa _whooole_ lotta thinkin' you're doin' there," F54 turned and marched away. "For your sake ah hope that you're correct."

"Oh, pardon us for making this charade so strenuous for you fellows," Lawrence pulled his hand back; H22 saw what he was doing and panicked, shaking his head and hands at the butler, "We'll just be taking our leave."

"No, no nono_nonononooooo_-!"

_CLANG._

"**_-TTCCHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTT!_**" F54 swung around, and H22 cowered back towards his partner as Doctor Nefarious continued his eruption, "I-WILL-ANNIHILATE YOOUU!" The doctor's red eyes squinted in fury and confusion as he saw no lombax in front of him, which was odd since he was just there. "Where did he go?!"

"Pardon me, doctor. But it seems that you took what kids these days call a 'snooze cruise'." Lawrence mused, folding his hands behind his back. "But, as it seems, he and his cohorts have escaped."

At this, Nefarious began to positively spark with anger again, clenching and unclenching his fists-and then he noticed the two quaking Galactic Rangers in front of him, hugging each other for dear life. "You two!" Growling, his hands began glowing as he charged up the dark matter within them; behind him, Lawrence casually moved backwards with his hands still behind his back, disappearing behind the Ice cream shop.

"H22, man…ah just wanted to let you know that ah think you're one of the best Rangers out there. You always been there for me pal," F54's voice shook-not from sorrow, but from pure fear as Nefarious turned his attention to them. "Sorry for bein' such a jerk to ya."

"F54, you remember that Halloween party we had on Stygia in '87?"

"Yeah, ah do. Why?"

"I, uh...was the one who set up that trap door up by the punch bowl..."

"What?! You mean that trap door ah fell through and landed in a room full of angry Landsharks?!" F54 pointed accusation at his partner. "By the time they found me, ah was only a head! You know how long ah had to spend in rehab?"

"No. How long?"

"_AH'M STILL IN IT!_"

"Enough! Since your squishy friend isn't here for his immediate obliteration, I guess you two blathering rust buckets will do!" Nefarious raised his clawed hands up, about to destroy the two petrified robots-but suddenly as he hurled a ball of energy towards them, a bluish streak flashed by, taking the Rangers with it. The purple energy ball collided with the ground, causing a heavy tremor and also destroying everything it touched as it spread out in a circle from the centerpoint; several explosions happened seconds later as several parked ships nearby got caught in the blast. When the dust cleared, there was a large ten foot diameter crater sitting in the park entrance. Narrowing his eyes, Nefarious scanned the inside of the crater. He didn't see anything in it and he broke out into maniacal laughter, raising his half clenched hands to the sky.

"Did you see that, Lawrence?! Total! ANNIHILATION! _AH AHA HAHAHAHAAA!_"

A hand forming the 'thumbs up' gesture popped out from behind the ice cream shop. "Wonderful sir. I can only hope some of your brain cells didn't get blown away along with the most of the turf."

* * *

Meanwhile, hundreds of feet up at a different plaza, Aphelion touched down carefully and let the Galactic Rangers slid off of her wings. "Well, that was rather close. Are you two okay?"

"Yes, thanks…uh, what's your name again?" F54 scratched his head.

"Her name's Aphelion, where are your manners?!" H22 snapped, slapping his partner in the back of the head.

"Now if I may ask, what do you need Ratchet and Clank for? You just missed them when you came to the park," Aphelion questioned, over F54's complaining, "I assume that it's something that can't wait?"

"You're right. It can't wait," F54 told her. "We tried contacting Clank, but he didn't answer. You see, we were asked by…"

* * *

"….Ace Hardlight?!"

"No, Al. How many times to I have to tell you, it's an action figure we picked up on the way here!" Ratchet shook the item in discussion in his hand, the other hand on his hip as he gave the techno geek an annoyed look, "You get one free if you can guess how many micro Drone Devices that this one lady had in a jar. There were 64," Ratchet tapped a finger to his chin. "Didn't know they made Drone Devices that small. I might have to make an investment."

He turned down to look at Clank, who said, "How about you invest in actually putting food in the fridge before thinking about weapons?"

Big Al was still staring past them, his mouth gaping open at something. Since he was half robot it kind of had a weird effect to it.

"I thought that was you who went to the store in the month of August!" Ratchet tilted his head. "Right? Cause we alternate every month…"

"That means I would have started in Febuary. I start shopping in January and then every other month afterward!"

"Oh, dang." The lombax chuckled, slapping a hand over his face. "I need to start writing this stuff down. Hey Clank, how much explosives do you think it would take to blow this hunk of plastic up?"

Susie tugged on Ratchet's pants with one hand; with the other she was holding some sort of device she'd been rummaging around Al's shop for. "Ratchet, who's the tall guy?"

"I wouldn't really consider myself tall, Susie. But there are other big parts of me that make up for my shortness." Ratchet had to duck to avoid the piece of machinery Clank through at him. "Never mind-oomph!" For the second time that day, he collided into someone, and this time he knew it was a guys because they had rock hard abs. And he crashed right into them, crumpling like a napkin and landing on the ground. "Ooohhhh…my aching…"

Clank soon took on the same expression Al had, all the while he walked over to Ratchet.

"Oof. Did I bump into a freaking locomotive or something?" Ratchet groaned, beginning to push himself up.

"Oh, sorry there, furball."

The lombax froze, his ears playing up as far as they could go at the deep frequencies they'd picked up. His head, however, craned up slowly until he met the eyes of the visitor.

"...Ace Hardlight?"

"The one and only," The former superhero stated, folding his arms. He sent a leer down at the lombax, and promptly received one back. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"I could say the same thing." Ratchet stood up, backing up slightly until he was in front of Susie. "I thought you were in Zordoom Prison."

"I was. But as they say, they let bygones be bygones and put me on parole. I couldn't be happier," Ace looked at Clank, who didn't know how to respond-being polite or being cautious, like Ratchet was. He decided to be Ratchet's opposite, to balance it out. "How are things going for you, tin can?"

A barely, _barely_ audible growl escaped from Ratchet's throat, lost to all organics in the room (counting Al); Clank looked up at the lombax and saw his poker face; at the same time, Ratchet's hand flexed and squeezed the Ace Hardlight action figure in his hand harder. The lombax hated it when other people called the robot 'tin can', seeing as to only he, and _only_ he, could use it in an affectionate manner. Clank steered the conversation with ease, also tapping Ratchet's leg inconspicuously to calm him down.

"I am fine, Mr. Hardlight. Are you?"

"Never been better, now that I'm free. I'm ready to start my life aknew. I even got me a girl."

"Oh, you did? What's her name?" Ratchet asked carefully, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Courtney Gears."

At this, Ratchet, Clank, and Al's mouths dropped (even further for Al). The lombax was first to speak. "C-Courtney…"

"Come on, the bombshell that used to hand out prizes at the AN? Celebrity popstar who once went out with my now _dead_ best friend?"

"I know who she is! Let's not forget she also teamed up with the crazy bucket of bolts that tried just tried to kill us in the park?" Ratchet's eyes glinted. "She's not called the "Gold Digger of the Solana Galaxy' for any reason."

"Ratchet!" Clank muttered in a hushed tone, while Ace's eyes narrowed.

"That's true. But she's changed. In a good way."

"In a good way, huh?" Ratchet completely forgot about the little girl standing patiently behind him. "Are you sure that's not what she wants you to think?"

"I'm positive," Ace said smoothly. "Besides, speaking of females apparently manipulating their boyfriends, how are things going with the Apogee girl?"

Dead silence.

The hand holding the action figure squeezed it so hard that the head popped off, rolling and landing right in front of Ace, who merely gave it a casual glance.

Clank quietly pulled Susie by the hand, leading her outside through the back door. Al disappeared out the door faster than a swarm of Tertramites going after Breegus necter would move.

"…and just what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, I don't know. At first I thought you had a thing for the President's daughter, but I guess that simmered off into nothingness. And by nothingness I mean friendship…oh, and I heard rumors about another female lombax ditching you to head off to their new motherland. What was her name? Amy? Anita? Angelica?"

"_Angela_." One word filled with so much venom.

"Right, her. Weren't you in your teens and she was in her early twenties? I guess that wouldn't have worked out, but as they say, 'age is but a number'. Then I know it had to hurt to be rejected by Courtney Gears. She told me all about the time you came up to her as a nervous wreck and tried being modest. I have to admit, it sounded really funny. Especially when she told me how she faked having an attraction towards your partner. She told me that you were just sitting there stunned."

"What else has she told you? How many one night stands she's had before _you_ came along?"

Ace flat out glared at the lombax at that moment, and suddenly launched himself growling at Ratchet, grabbing the front of his shirt. He lifted the lombax up, who in turn pulled his wrench out.

"Listen here, lombax. I don't know what your problem is, but I sure didn't some here looking for trouble," Ace said, pressing his face closer to Ratchet's, who didn't show any signs of weakness and did the same.

"You didn't come here looking for trouble? Don't make me laugh. I still don't trust you." Ratchet answered. He chuckled as he added, "And by the way, Talwyn and I _are_ together. She's a much better girlfriend to have than that skanky broad you call a -"

In the next second he was forcibly thrown against the front desk, sliding and hitting the wall behind it. He jumped up, dodging a well placed punch that probably would've have `rewarded him with several broken bones if it had hit. Growling, he swung his Omniwrench and scored a blow on Ace's shoulder blade; the golden haired superhero faltered slightly, and then was completely taken off guard as Ratchet tackled him full force. The force caused them both to slide back, all the while they struggled, trying to overpower each other. Clank came in, stopping at the doorway and closing the door behind him. "Ratchet! Ace! You both must stop this at once!"

"He's nitpicking at my personal love life!" Ratchet hollered. He winced as one of his ears were grabbed an pulled.

"And he's not being fair and being polite to me!" Ace shouted, equally as loud.

Despite the odds, the former superhero seemed to be losing; Ratchet, on the other hand, was powered by his emotions and was therefore deemed invincible at that moment in time. Victory seemed like his-

-until Ace kicked him in the stomach, launching him through the air.

He landed on the ground next to Clank, and then they both looked up as Ace began towards them, albeit limping. Ratchet glanced past him and saw his wrench on the ground, out of reach-but he had made extra provisions. He pulled out his N60 Storm, pointing it at the approaching superhero-who paused. For a moment he and Ratchet stared hard at each other, both breathing hard from their injuries. Then Ace straightened up, looking like he was about to leave.

"Seems like I came at a bad time. I guess I can just come ask Al to help fix my ship another day. It's not like I'm stranded here on Metropolis with no where else to go."

As he began towards the door, Ratchet sighed, exchanging looks with Clank. He put his weapon away.

"Ace, wait."

The former superhero stopped, not turning around. He felt Ratchet coming up behind him several seconds later and then swung to face him. "Yeah?"

"Listen, I…I'm sorry," Ratchet sighed, one hand behind his head as his shoulders slumped. "I didn't want to take everything this way."

"Why are you still so wary of me, then?"

"We really didn't leave each other the last time on decent terms," Ratchet answered. "And I guess that subconsciously contributed to my attitude. And for being such a big jerk," He pulled out his N60 suddenly, making Ace and Clank jump slightly-but he dropped it to the ground and kicked it away to join his wrench. He raised his hands in the air slowly, standing tall, "You get to whale on me. Oh, but be careful not to break any bones. I really don't need anything else added to my health record."

A thin line formed from Ace's mouth as he squinted down at Ratchet. Then, he raised his right hand slowly above his head and then plowed it right into Ratchet's solar plexus. The lombax doubled over wheezing, holding his midsection. After recovering from his initial shock, Clank glared at Ace.

"_You-_"

"No, Clank."

The robot looked over at Ratchet, unable to see his face from behind his ear. "Ratchet, what? That was a cheap shot!"

"No, but I deserved it," Ratchet straightened up some, one hand still wrapped around his waist. "I did, and I meant it when I told him." A smile suddenly split his features as he locked eyes with Ace.

"And besides, that didn't even hurt much."

"You are one of the biggest bastards I have ever met," Ace said, returning the grin. "And yet, I find myself liking your personality."

"Why, thanks. Now if we had just sat down and talked when we first met," Ratchet coughed several times, then straightened up all the way, "We wouldn't have this big of a problem now, would we?"

"Touché. We should really sit down and discuss our feelings every now and again," Ace cracked his knuckles. "You can really scrap, you know that?"

"Yep, but I prefer hand-to-wrench combat. When I'm wrenchless I don't hold back." Ratchet's grin got wider, into a more devious looking one. "You wanna see again? I still have some fight left."

At that moment, Al appeared in the doorway, Susie right behind him. "Yeah, but one more fight like that and my shop won't be standing."

"Oh, right-sorry Al."

"It's no problem. I'm used to trouble cropping up wherever you and Clank are," Al said dismissively, waving his cybernetic hand. "I'll clean everything up. Need anything Mr. Hardlight? And I trust you won't shoot me again if I do something wrong?"

"Uh, no I won't. Sorry for that, anyway." Ace copied Ratchet's movement from earlier, rubbing the back of his head. He still felt a bit guilty after almost killing the shack owner. "I uh, need my ship repaired. It got toasted by some weird explosion in the Captain Starshield national park."

Ratchet, Clank, and Susie looked at one another. They had a good idea of what those 'explosions' were...

* * *

_**A/N **_

_**Chapter Two coming soon! **_


End file.
